[Season 1] Ep. 4 - Deserve your place

Nocturn-sensei then gathered us all outside the school building, taking us to a small gravel sports field with a gym right next to it where we all had to change into U.A. sportswear for our teacher's test.

Now, all dressed in blue jogging suits with a white pattern framed in red forming the initials of the school, we all lined up in front of the teacher who looked like a sergeant in command of the army.

- "Well, now that you're all ready, let me explain today's exercise. As you probably already know, U.A. High School has produced some of the world's greatest heroes and many believe they can become the next Ultra Bright. My job as a teacher is to make you that kind of hero. But, given the staggering number of people taking the entrance exams, it is increasingly difficult to effectively judge the capable students of others. Therefore, I came up with the idea of this exercise to eliminate the most incompetent among you."

Eliminate?! He was going to kick some of us out of school on the first day?! The news sounded like a hammer to our heads and we were all paralyzed by the terrible announcement. My hands were shaking, sweat was beading down my face as we listened to the exact conditions of the exercise that would seal our school future.

- "At the beginning of middle school, you all normally had to pass a physical fitness test without using your quirks including tests such as the 50-meter dash, the Grip Strength Test, the Standing Long Jump, the Sustained Sideways Jump, and the Pitch. This time it will be a bit different, you will have to choose one of these tests and achieve at least three times your middle school results using your quirks". He moved to take out his digital tablet and make the roll call. "Haruto Shishiudo. Places please."

He who was so haughty towards me a few minutes earlier wasn't leading in front of so much pressure. I couldn't say whether it was Nega's influence or just my resentment of his arrogance, but I couldn't help smirking when I saw him so distressed.

- "Which trial do you choose?" Nocturn-sensei asked in his imposing voice.

- "The Pitch sir," he replied in a somewhat shaky voice despite his attempt to keep his composure.

- "All right. Your move, anytime."

Haruto then approached the sports caddy containing a whole bunch of balls, grabbed one of them, and then came to position himself in the middle of the field in front of the whole class. He then took a deep breath, inflated his muscles with air, cocked his arm, and then propelled it with all his strength added to the air expelled by his muscles at the moment of throwing, making the ball fly for miles. It was the effect of his quirk, Inflated Muscles. As we all watched the ball fly away in awe, Haruto joined the line, wearing a smile as sarcastic as it was unbearable.

The teacher then called the next one, Sanki Tatsuoka, a brown boy with black wings, scales on his neck, and sharp claws and fangs. He also had a tail of black scales heritage from his quirk, Black Dragon, and large green eyes that were almost hypnotic. As he stepped forward to complete his test, he took a deep breath while wearing a broad smile as if to give himself confidence. He then chose the standing long jump which he easily achieved with the help of his wings which allowed him to reach the necessary distance to be received. On landing, he couldn't help but let his joy burst out, gesticulating like a child who had just won the jackpot at the fairgrounds, making the whole class smile.

Then it was the turn of Naoto Honetani, a very thin boy, with pale skin, long black hair, and red eyes. Walking forward with his hands in his pockets looking at the ground and not letting any emotion show, he seemed to want to finish quickly. He chose the same test and, cracking all his fingers both to prepare himself and to hide his stress, he suddenly pulled the bones of his right leg out of his body, thus serving as a stilt that pushed him extremely high and allowed him to pass the test thanks to his quirk Extendabones.

Then came Shōji Hibikiya's turn, a slightly round boy with black and shaved hair looking a little stressed or even smeared as he stepped forward to take a ball for the pitching test. He then threw the ball in the air with all his strength and then, activating his quirk Giga Burp, pressing with his right hand on his belly, released a powerful burp that propelled the ball even further while bursting the class laughing. Making a small comic bow, he returned to his seat, laughing with laughter for no reason.

Ino Yuima was next. A shy little redhead with green eyes, she approached the sports cart and took a ball, trembling with stress, avoiding everyone's gaze. She then used her quirk, Fiber Manipulation, to turn the fibers of her bracelet into a helix that allowed the ball to fly a very long distance until she lost control of her quirk but far enough away to pass the test.

Nocturn-sensei then called Shinsuke Akibo, a little brown boy with bright blue laughing eyes. Choosing the standing long jump test, he stooped down to store gravel in the hole-like cavities in each of his palms. Thanks to his quirk Concrete Glass, he then pulled out a large glass column and leaned on it to increase his jump. Landing in front of the professor, he gave him a small smile mixed with satisfaction and the stress of having done wrong.

Then came Atsuyo Hatsui, a very discreet girl hidden under a gigantic thickness of brown hair, giving her more of a Wookie look than a human because of her quirk, Hairy Creature. Using her famous hairs that she seemed to control at will, she created a gigantic arm of hair that easily sent the pitching ball flying before it came back to its place without saying a word as if nothing happened.

The next was Miyu Itonori, a rather tall and broad-shouldered girl with curly blond hair, wearing glasses in front of her amber-colored eyes. She came forward rather confident, talking to herself to give herself courage. She decided to opt for the strength test grip and, taking the grip in her right hand, she activated her quirk, Puppeteer Mistress, and made the puppeteer's threads appear from her other hand and seemed to add extra control over the muscles in her right hand which passed the test easily before she let out a cry of relief.

Then it was Yūji's turn to take the test. Bragging to the girls before taking the pitch test ball in his hand, he seemed pretty confident and sure of himself. He then threw the ball with all his strength while closing his eyes, to activate his quirk, Sentinel Eyes which made 2 floating eyeballs appear, which in turn shot rays of light at the ball to send it as far as possible and pass the test.

The teacher then called Aiba Chimoto, a young dark-haired, a rather thin man with long arms who seemed to be asleep on his feet. He then walked towards the cart full of balls, took one, and threw it as hard as he could, but the ball took off in slow motion under the effect of his quirk, Lazy Touch. Taking advantage of the slowing down to add more strength, he punched it in before disabling his quirk while yawning, sending the ball off at a tremendous speed.

Ise Ibayashi was next to come forward for the pitch test. She was a brown girl with a large chest, tousled hair, and eccentric red glasses. She also took a ball in both hands, and then, activating her quirk, Switching Materials, she changed the material it was made of to make it as light as a marble and sent it as far as she could and narrowly passed the test.

Shigemi Mushiage was designated in turn. A young blonde girl with emerald green eyes, she seemed very confident and did not let the slightest stress show while getting into position for the 50-meter dash. Squealing an almost unbearable melody, her quirk Insect Queen called from the surroundings, a gigantic cloud of flying insects that went behind her back and served as propulsion in her race, making her pass the test which did not fail to make her smile.

Nocturn-sensei then called Etsumi Mashō, making her leap in terror. Walking towards the teacher, trembling with anguish, this young girl with straight black hair like her eyes, was in a state of absolute stress. She took a little breath to concentrate on using her quirk Magic Index and, with the tip of her index finger, she pointed at the ball which began to float as if manipulated by a magic wand. Thus, she used her power to send the ball flying and easily pass the test despite her anxiety.

Bokurō Hanesaka was next. This big, fat, shy, blue-eyed blond boy walked slowly towards the gym. He took the ball, pushed it into his belly, and his belly folded up as if it were made of rubber, which propelled the ball like a cannonball. Embarrassed by his quirk Belly Bounce, he pulled himself back in line, his head down, full of shame.

The teacher then called Mitoshi Hashirai who approached nonchalantly, looking inexpressive and even withdrawn. The young tanned brown boy put himself in position for the 50-meter dash and then, touching the ground to activate his quirk Probuilder, 2 big pillars in exits, propelling him on 10 meters allowing him to quickly finish his run and pass the test before returning to his place, the air still as closed and impassive.

Then a rather distinguished boy, looking older than our age, straight, medium-length ginger hair, came forward with his head held high, as if he had already got the best possible mark. His name, Takashi Higemoto. He was getting ready for the Sustained Sideways Jump when, activating his quirk Living Mustache, long hairs came out of his nostrils and, twisting them by the will to use extra limbs, he originally passed the test and fast enough for limbs made of hair. He then returned to the line, proud of his performance, which I had found as impressive as it was grotesque.

Then it was the turn of a tall, brown, shiny green-eyed boy who seemed somewhat shy. He stepped forward slowly from the teacher and approached to take the grip of the test strength, and when he activated his quirk, symbols flashed in his eyes, as in The Matrix, and the grip seemed to tighten easily on its own. The young man, named Yūto Shiori and his Reprogramming quirk had easily overcome the test, and he calmly returned to the line.

Then comes Moe, who, thanks to all our physical training during the holidays, showed a broad and confident smile. She took the ball in her right hand and threw it with all her power, while adding the strength of her Fire Mane which, controlled by her will, came to hit the ball on the throw with the force of a powerful whip, sending the ball far enough away to pass the test. Moe turned to me in a joyful mood and winked at me with a wink of encouragement and laughter.

Nocturn-sensei then called Masako in his hoarse voice, who jumped out of stress while her horns, which were much smaller than at the entrance exam, became a little bigger. She then walked towards the basket of balls, so stressed that her horns continued to grow. She took a deep breath and, activating her alter, Aries Demon, she threw the ball so far that it destroyed a tree in the nearby park. The effect didn't last long, her horns being very small, they quickly went into her skull. As she seemed exhausted and still anxious as she walked back in line, I couldn't help but feel empathy for her and her alter, who seemed to absorb much of her physical and mental energy.

Finally came the fateful moment when Nocturn-sensei called my name. Swallowing my saliva, with a ball in my stomach, asking myself a thousand questions about which trial to choose to better put forward my quirk, I walked into the middle of the gym field. When, I was suddenly interrupted in my reflection by the teacher who put his hand on my shoulder, displaying a very serious, almost solemn air:

- "Before you decide anything, I'd like you to activate the other part of your quirk. Based on the results of your entrance exam, that's the one I most want to test. At least, if you feel capable enough to control it."

Disconcerted by his request, I didn't know what to answer. Nega was so unpredictable that I had always been afraid to use it, but... what if I didn't use it? Would he fire me? Seeking support from the eyes of my classmates, I crossed paths with Moe, full of confidence in me, who held her thumb in the air as a sign of approval, deciding me to try to believe in my abilities.

- "Y-yes! I can do it," I replied in a trembling voice hidden by my almost assured tone.

I then took my concentration to call Nega and, as his personality surfaced, my eyes and hair gradually turned blue. Nega then opened his eyes, stretched out his arms, and exclaimed:

- "Ah! Finally some freedom!" He then turned to Nocturn-sensei with his almost diabolical grin "So you wish to see my abilities? Ah ah! Well, you won't be disappointed."

He then approached a ball from the throwing test. Activating a repulsion zone at the time of the throw, the ball flew so far away that it was no longer visible, which amused him, wearing a sneering smile. He then turned to our teacher in a provocative manner:

- "So? Is that enough for you, Mr. Big Professor? How about you come up against me and see what I'm really made of, huh? Come on, I'm waiting for you." He said, putting himself in a fighting position, still smiling.

To which the teacher did not even reply, letting out a simple sigh before melting on Nega like a shadow and, before he could even retaliate, turned around and gave him a sharp blow on the nape of his neck, knocking him down easily, taking our fainted body on his shoulder, he turned towards the rest of the class:

- "Fine. Class dismissed. You can go home for the day. Get plenty of rest because tomorrow is your first superhero class with Ultra Bright so get ready." He said before he turned around and waved to the class, taking me to the infirmary.

- "Wait, sir! What are you going to do with Raiji? You're not going to fire him, are you?!" Suddenly interrupting him, Masako.

- "And why not, it would be well deserved, wouldn't it? Here we accept that the best, not bipolar social cases like him," Haruto replied without waiting for Nocturn's answer.

- "Was I not clear enough in the conditions of the exercise? Did he pass his test? Yes, he did. Then why would I fire him? I don't think I forbade you to attack me," he said before continuing on his way without paying more attention to Haruto's remark, who only let out a little "Pff" of disdain.

So that ended our first day in U.A. and everyone was looking forward to the next day. Meeting Ultra Bright, being taught by the greatest professional hero. What could be in store for us in this course that was already beyond the limits?